Catheter-related bloodstream infections are caused by bacteria/fungi in patients with intravascular catheters. These infections are an important cause of illness and excess medical costs, as approximately 80,000 catheter-related bloodstream infections occur in U.S. intensive care units each year. In addition to the monetary costs, these infections are associated with anywhere from 2,400 to 20,000 deaths per year.
Guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describe various ways to limit catheter-related bloodstream infections in hospital, outpatient and home care settings. The guidelines address issues such as hand hygiene, catheter site care and admixture preparation. Despite these guidelines, catheter-related bloodstream infections continue to plague our healthcare system.
Protective caps incorporating various disinfectants and/or antimicrobial agents are one approach that has been implemented to prevent these infections at needleless connection points. While these caps are effective for long-term protection against pathogens, long-term exposure to the antimicrobial agent or disinfectant can cause damage to the needleless connection or access point of a medical device. In some instances, the antimicrobial agent is suspended in an alcohol solvent. The alcohol solvent used in the protective cap has been shown to cause device failure in many connector type devices. To prevent this damage, some protective caps are designed to permit the alcohol-base to evaporate from the protective cap. However, once the alcohol solvent has evaporated, the effectiveness of the protective cap is diminished.
Therefore, there is a need for an effective and inexpensive way to reduce the number of catheter-related infections for needleless connectors and access ports. Such methods and systems are disclosed herein.